Silver Rose

Chapter X - Untainted Flower

It was still dark out when Lilly awoke. She yawned, staring up at the ceiling for a bit. She closed her eyes to try and get back to sleep, but it was no use. She swung her legs over the side of her bed, hopping down to the ground as quietly as she could. She wasn't as agile as Ingrid was, but she was getting good enough to not make the loudest thud in the world on the carpet. She was in the middle of grabbing clothes from her dresser when she realized how quiet it was in the room. She looked around. All of the other beds were empty.

"Huh?" she said aloud, switching on the lights. "Oh. Right. The party."

Lilly had been the first of her team to leave last night's party at the third year class's dormitory. The bash was put together by Team SQRL, the top-ranked third-year team, who meant for it to be a celebration of the newest students' survival of the first two weeks of classes, but it quickly got uncomfortable for the only snow-white-haired girl in the building. It was clear that there would be no way for her to escape her family's name.

She hadn't been the only one forced to attend the party by her friends, though. There was one other girl she had tried to make friends with, the only one who didn't seem to know, or perhaps care, that she was a Schnee. Mizuki was her name. She had stood out to Lilly not because she spent her time away from the rest of the crowd, but because of the fact that she wore a perpetual gloom, as if she could never be happy. That didn't sit well with Lilly, but the girl had refused to open up to her any more than that.

Lilly sighed as she changed into a pair of black jeans and boots, wearing her blue shirt un-tucked with the highest button left undone. She threw on her team coat, the white and pale blue one they had picked out together, before leaving the room. She stepped out of the building. Campus was nearly silent, save for the blowing of the wind. The world was still asleep this early in the morning. The light above her flickered for a few seconds before returning to a steady glow.

That was weird, she thought as she made her way toward the quad to visit the knight statue.

She looked at the marble for a while, admiring the strong posture with which it stood. She found herself smiling. Whoever it was this statue represented, he must have been a great person to have fought alongside.

Something was strange. It was much too quiet out, even if it was only five o'clock in the morning. There were no crickets chirping, no fluttering of wings in the sky, no bird calls, nothing. It was as though the entire world was asleep.

She turned around. There was no one there. She walked toward the west quadrant, where the administration center and main hall stood. She passed by the empty amphitheater and walked into the building.

Empty. Just like the rest of the world.

Where is everyone?

She decided to head back to the dorms. Something wasn't right. The first thing she needed to do was find her team. It was bad enough that she had left Myrtenaster in her room, but the worst part was being separated from her comrades.

A chill ran up and down her spine as she neared the south quadrant. Something was there, something she could not identify. She pressed herself up against a wall, peeking around the corner. There was someone headed into one of the dorms. A student, maybe, but something was odd.

Lilly quickly followed after the shadow, but when she entered through the same door, it was gone. She looked left and right. Empty. Not even footsteps or the opening of doors or windows. She stood absolutely still. This building was as empty as the rest.

Her hands were shaking now, knees about to give way. She backed away toward the doors and exited the building, finding herself out on the walkways between dormitories. Her head was on a swivel as she scanned her surroundings for signs of any kind of life.